Sao Paulo Facts

Interesting Facts about Sao Paulo

The most populous city proper in the Americas, São Paulo has nearly 11 million inhabitants within its limits (and more cars than Rio de Janeiro has people).

People from São Paulo city are known as paulistanos, while people from the interior of the state are called paulistas. Sampa is one of the city's nicknames.

The city consumes approximately 1 million pizzas per day.

Approximately 1 percent of the nation's GDP is concentrated on a two-kilometer avenue know as the Paulista. The thoroughfare is said to resemble love, as it starts in the neighborhood of Paraiso (paradise) and ends in Consolacao (consolation).

The Santa Cecilia and Bras neighborhoods in downtown São Paulo have vegetation levels rivaling that of the Sahara desert.

The 558-foot Mirante do Vale building near Vale do Anhangabau is the country's tallest skyscraper. The Torre Sigma, currently under construction in the southern part of the city, is expected to eclipse the Mirante's height.

The city will host the opening game of the 2014 World Cup.

Each May, the municipal government offers 24 consecutive hours of cultural activities. The event is called Virada Cultural.

São Paulo is devoid of billboards. The Clean City law passed in 2006 outlaws any such "visual pollution."

More people of Japanese descent live in São Paulo than in any other city outside of Japan.

Folha de S.Paulo is the country's most circulated newspaper, with nearly 300,000 copies sold daily.

Local football club Corinthians, favorite team of outgoing President Lula, has the highest grossing brand of all Brazilian soccer teams. Cross-town rival São Paulo Futebol Club's sells the second most merchandise.